Reprinted from the Rutgers Music Education Newsletter, Fall 1992 issue
Breathing Life Into Your Performance
by
Scott Mendoker
All wind instrumentalists have the same problem--THE BREATH. What is the answer to the problem? The solution is to incorporate the breath into the music. When that happens--instead of playing great music and--"Oh yeah, too bad you had to breathe!--you can play great music and the breath becomes a part of the whole picture--the whole performance. Imagine this--you are all dressed up for the prom only to realize that the only socks you have are you old sweaty gym socks! If you had planned it a little better, the sock problem would probably have been eliminated. It is the same with the breath. Plan it just as you would plan that tricky passage.
The above graph refers to Total Lung Capacity: the air in your lungs. In very general terms, the longer one plays without taking a breath, the longer it will take to finally take a new breath. There are two reasons for this:
- Obviously, the more air that has to be replaced, the longer it will take to replace it.
- The brain always gives us exactly what we ask for. As the lungs become depleted, the brain will engage the necessary muscles to assist in the process. when lung volume drops below 50% of capacity level, the brain will engage certain muscles to help push the air out of the lungs. Before a breath can be taken, these muscles must be relaxed. Then, and only then, will one be allowed to take a breath.
Here is a good example:
Play a loud note in the middle register on your instrument and sustain it for as long as possible. Then as quickly as possible, inhale. Notice the resistance (throat noise) and notice the time that it takes to fill the lungs. If you were playing a running eighth-note passage, several notes would have to be dropped in order for you to be able to fill your lungs,
Now try this:
On one breath. play several measures of forte half-notes in the middle register, quarter note equal to 72; put a little break between each note. Remember, do not breath after the initial breath. Play until you run out of air. Notice what happens to both sound quality and pitch as the air supply is depleted. Now repeat this exercise (after you have recovered!) breathing between each note instead of making the small break; the only difference is that you are taking small breaths between each note. After a while, notice how relaxed you are. Your body is not telling the brain to supply air because it is not needed. You have all the air that is required! Like the marathon runner who only takes a drink when he is thirsty, by the time you need air, it is already too late. By the time that the runner takes a drink, he is already dehydrated.
I usually suggest that the student stay within the 80% to 50% range of their own TLC. There is muscle tension that develops when the lungs are too full. It is always better to take three small breaths in place of one big one when there is no convenient place in the music in which to breath, such as in measures of continuous eighth notes.
Here is a good exercise to develop good quick breaths:
Set your metronome to quarter note equal to 60. Take a big breath. Now in 5/4 time, exhale for beats 1 through 4, so that by beat 4, you have pretty much emptied out your lungs. On beat 5--inhale. Repeat this exercise several times. This should be fairly easy. Once you have mastered this, turn up the speed of the metronome. Always aim for a total refill over the period of one beat. You must stay relaxed; only increase the speed of the metronome when you are comfortable at the existing tempo.
Remember to mark your breaths in pencil, and make the breath a part of the music. It will be less distracting to the audience and should help toward a more musically satisfying performance.
Scott Mendoker has earned a reputation as both a superb musician and a distinguished teacher. His experience as a free lance tuba player includes performances with the New York Philharmonic, the Bavarian Radio Orchestra, the Montreal Symphony, the New Jersey Symphony, the Boston Pops, and the New York Pops. Prof. Mendoker has also recorded with the Chicago Symphony and the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. He has been a member of the Grand Teton Music Festival and has given masterclasses at Tanglewood. As a soloist, he has performed throughout the United States giving recitals and performing as a guest soloist with orchestras and bands.
He is on the faculty of the Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University.